Memorial services for John McCain to continue in DC this weekend
Aug 30, 2018, 8:26 PM | Updated: Aug 31, 2018, 8:17 pm
The flag-draped casket of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., is carried by an Armed Forces body bearer team to a hearse, Thursday, Aug. 30, 2018, at Andrews Air Force Base, Md. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
(AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
PHOENIX — Family members, friends, supporters and other admirers of John McCain will have more opportunities to give the late senator a proper-send off before he is buried this weekend.
McCain, who died at 81 after a year-long battle with brain cancer, will lie in state at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. on Friday, where his family, colleagues, staff and the public will honor his life and service. The funeral ceremony is expected to start at 11 a.m. D.C. time.
After the ceremony, the public will be invited to pay their respects to McCain. Members of the public will be allowed to enter the Capitol as long as they are in line by 8 p.m. D.C. time.
On Saturday, McCain will be carried by Armed Forces Body Bearers from the U.S. Capitol and moved by motorcade to Washington National Cathedral. The motorcade was expected to kick off at 8:30 a.m. D.C. time.
The public will be allowed to line the procession route along Constitution Avenue.
John McCain’s procession route in D.C. (Photo: JohnMcCain.com)
The motorcade was expected to pause at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial where McCain’s wife, Cindy, will lay a ceremonial wreath to honor those whose lives were lost during the Vietnam War.
Former presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama are expected to speak at his funeral on Saturday.
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Then, on Sunday, a private memorial service will take place at the U.S. Naval Academy Chapel in Annapolis, Maryland, starting at 2 p.m. D.C. time as McCain is put to rest.
McCain’s family, friends, congressional colleagues and staff, as well as U.S. and international leaders, were invited to attend and participate in the service.
The senator’s 106-year-old mother, Roberta, was also expected to be in attendance.
McCain will then be buried next to Naval Academy classmate and lifelong friend Admiral Chuck Larson.
People close to the White House and McCain’s family said President Donald Trump, who has mocked McCain for getting captured during the Vietnam War, has been asked to stay away from all events.
This weekend’s services will come after two days of services honoring the senator in Phoenix.
Thousands of people were able to pay their respects to McCain directly as his body lay in state at the state Capitol in Phoenix on Wednesday.
The next day, residents lined the streets of Phoenix as McCain’s casket was driven to a local funeral home before former Vice President Joe Biden, Arizona Cardinals Larry Fitzgerald and others spoke at a private memorial service.
KTAR News 92.3 FM will carry live, uninterrupted coverage of the national memorial service for Sen. John McCain at 7-9 a.m. Saturday.
